Prime Minister Li Keqiang
Photographer: Noel Celis / AFP / Getty Images
3.Member of the Politburo
Nine of the 18 members of the Communist Party’s Central Politburo, excluding seven members of the Standing Committee, will leave this year, making it easier to demote party cadres who take ambiguous positions “on party leadership”.rule it will be newly defined and the number of substitutes may increase.
victory : Mr. Xi could force members of the Politburo into early retirement one after another, filling vacancies with his own assistants. Chen Gang, deputy director and senior research fellow at the Institute of East Asian Studies at the National University of Singapore, estimates that up to two-thirds of Politburo members can be replaced. Xi’s political allies could account for 80 percent of the total, said Neil Thomas, a Chinese analyst at Eurasia Group.
defeat : Failure to achieve supermajority, or the promotion of executives with no particular contact with Mr. Xi, could indicate some pressure to make concessions.
4. “Leader of the people”
Chinese state media have sometimes referred to Xi as “the leader of the people,” sparking speculation that Mr. Xi might try to formalize the term. In the past, the founding father, Mr. Mao Zedong, was also considered the leader.
victory : If he manages to achieve the title of leader, he will become a special historical figure on a par with the Mao clan. To challenge Mr. Xi is to challenge the will of the people.
defeat : If Xi doesn’t get this title, it could mean that there has been some resistance to the banned personality cult in Deng Xiaoping’s reforms.
5.official mail
Whether Xi will keep his official titles as general secretary of the party’s Central Committee, chairman and chairman of the Central Military Commission will depend on the statements made at the party’s congress.
victory : If the office of Mr. Mao’s party chairman is restored and Mr. Xi takes office, his superiority will be confirmed.
defeat : If Mr. Xi gives up even one of his titles, it is a sign that he is willing to share power with a potential successor.
6. Review of the party constitution
The revision of the party’s constitution will show how much support Mr. Xi’s slogans and policies have from within the party. At the party congress five years ago, “Xi Jinping’s thinking on socialism with Chinese characteristics for a new era” was included in the party’s constitution.
victory : There is a possibility that the name will be shortened to “Xi Jinping Thought” and that it will be classified together with the thought of Mao Zedong. If done, “it would not only further signal Xi’s intention to rule for life, but it would also demonstrate his mandate to push his agenda forward, even at the cost of it,” Thomas said. .
defeat : If the revisions to the party’s constitution fail to elevate Xi’s ideology, it could signal that some party leaders have doubts about the continuity of Xi’s ideology.
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